This book is a volume in a scholarly series designed to present the largest number of pictures and plans at a reasonable price (I know, $30 is hardly cheap, but look at some prices for scholarly books). It is not meant to be much fun. Sorry!
From Amazon.com
Art and Architecture in Russia
I'm very disappointed in this book. Except for the cover, there is not a single colored picture. The text is difficult both because it is too technical and because the type is too small. For a $30 soft cover book, I expected stunning pictures of Russia's fascinating architecture and art, accompanied by interesting text. Each museum in Russia has a beautiful, full color book at a much lower cost than this one. If you get to Russia, make sure you buy everything you want there, because there seems to be nothing comparable available in this country.